Teachers and Families Working Together

Teachers and Families Working Together is a concise resource that provides future teachers with exactly what they need to know when working with the families of young children. Chapters detail the benefits of family involvement for families, teachers, and especially children. Using the voices of many family members and teachers, this book describes diverse family types and cultures and gives specific strategies teachers can use to involve family members and the community in the life of a class or school. The family involvement strategies are divided into written communication, shared time, and other ways to involve families. Strategies are practical and are based on the experiences of early childhood educators. Features that this text offers: First section looks at family involvement from three different perspectives, -those of experts, families, and teachers. The barriers to family involvement from the perspectives of families and teachers are examined. Different ways of working with families -such as written communications, shared time with families, and working through differences between teachers and families are detailed. Fourth section shares closing thoughts and solutions about work with families. Pedagogy to support student learning includes: ";Voices of Teachers,"; ";Voices of Families,"; ";Case Studies,"; ";Suggested Reflections,"; ";Field Experiences,"; and ";Website Resources."; Author Bio: Deborah Diffily is an assistant professor of early childhood education at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. Her research interests include project-based learning, children's literacy and scientific development, and working with families. She coauthored Teaching Young Children with Margaret Puckett and Project-Based Learning with Young Children with Charlotte Sassman.

Deborah Diffily is an assistant professor of early childhood education at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.